The impact of constructive operating lease capitalisation on key accounting ratios

Current UK lease accounting regulation does not require operating leases to be capitalised in the accounts of lessees, although this is likely to change with the publication of FRS 5. This study conducts a prospective analysis of the effects of such a change. The potential magnitude of the impact of lease capitalisation upon individual users' decisions, market valuations, company cash flows, and managers' behaviour can be indicated by the effect on key accounting ratios, which are employed in decision-making and in financial contracts. The capitalised value of operating leases is estimated using a method similar to that suggested by Imhoff, Lipe and Wright (1991), adapted for the UK accounting and tax environment, and developed to incorporate company-specific assumptions. Results for 1994 for a random sample of 300 listed UK companies show that, on average, the unrecorded long-term liability represented 39% of reported long-term debt, while the unrecorded asset represented 6% of total assets. Capitalisation had a significant impact (at the 1% level) on six of the nine selected ratios (profit margin, return on assets, asset turnover, and three measures of gearing). Moreover, the Spearman rank correlation between each ratio before and after capitalisation revealed that the ranking of companies changed markedly for gearing measures in particular. There were significant inter-industry variations, with the services sector experiencing the greatest impact. An analysis of the impact of capitalisation over the five-year period from 1990 to 1994 showed that capitalisation had the greatest impact during the trough of the recession. Results were shown to be robust with respect to key assumptions of the capitalisation method. These findings contribute to the assessment of the economic consequences of a policy change requiring operating lease capitalisation. Significant changes in the magnitude of key accounting ratios and a major shift in company performance rankings suggest that interested parties' decisions and company cash flows are likely to be affected

Revisiting (some of) the Lasting Impacts of the Liberty Ships Via A Metallurgical Analysis of Rivets from the SS John W. Brown

During World War II, 2710 Liberty ships were built in the United States across 18 ship yards. The rate of production of these ships was at a scale not previously witnessed, reflecting a strategic marshaling of national assets critical to the war effort. For the metallurgist, metallurgical engineer, or materials scientist, these ships also struck commanding images regarding their catastrophic failures. The study of these failures led to increased understanding of brittle fracture, fracture mechanics, and ductile-to-brittle transition temperatures. The post-mortem studies of Liberty ships highlighted the importance of composition and microstructure in controlling the properties of steel in fracture-critical applications. This study examines a rivet from the SS “John W. Brown”, which was assembled in Baltimore, Maryland, and launched in September 1942, The “John W. Brown” was restored between 1988 and 1991. Classical metallurgical analysis of a rivet from the original 1942 vessel is compared with modern rivets used during its restoration. The rivets provide an analogue to the plate material used in these ships. A comparison of these materials is presented along with a discussion of the importance of composition–microstructure–property relationships that concomitantly evolved

Sol-gel synthesis and multiferroic properties of pyrochlore-free Pb(Fe0.5Nb0.5)O3 thin films

Lead iron niobate (PbFe0.5Nb0.5O3 - PFN) thin films were synthesized by a modified sol-gel route, which offers the advantage of a rapid, simple and non-toxic reaction method. Polycrystalline perovskite-structured PFN thin films without pyrochlore phases were obtained on Pt/Ti/SiO2/Si substrates after sintering by rapid thermal annealing at 650 {\deg}C. TEM and AFM images confirmed the excellent quality of the sintered film, while EDS spectroscopy revealed the presence of oxygen vacancies near the film/substrate interface. Electric measurements show good dielectric properties and ferroelectric behavior, characterized by typical C-V curves and well-defined P-E ferroelectric loops at 1 kHz, with remanent polarization values of ~12 uC/cm2. The polarization, however, increases with decreasing frequency, indicating the presence of leakage currents. I-V measurements show a significant increase in DC-conduction at relatively low fields (around 100 kV/cm). The films display ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature, with magnetic remanence around 30 emu/cm3 and a coercive field of 1 kOe. These values are significantly higher than those obtained for PFN powders fabricated by the same sol-gel route, as well as the magnetization values reported in the literature for epitaxial films.Comment: 24 pages, 10 figure

BASINS/HSPF: Model use, calibration, and validation

ABSTRACT. This article presents recommendations by model developers and the authors about calibration and validation procedures for the Hydrological Simulatio

International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE) ultraviolet spectral atlas of selected astronomical objects

The IUE Ultraviolet Spectral Atlas of Selected Astronomical Objects (or 'the Atlas'), is based on the data that were available in the IUE archive in 1986, and is intended to be a quick reference for the ultraviolet spectra of many categories of astronomical objects. It shows reflected sunlight from the Moon, planets, and asteroids, and also shows emission from comets. Comprehensive compilations of UV spectra for main sequence, subgiant, giant, bright giant, and supergiant stars are published elsewhere. This Atlas contains the spectra for objects occupying other areas of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram: pre-main sequence stars, chemically peculiar stars, pulsating variables, subluminous stars, and Wolf-Rayet stars. This Atlas also presents phenomena such as the chromospheric and transition region emissions from late-type stars; composite spectra of stars, gas streams, accretion disks and gas envelopes of binary systems; the behavior of gas ejecta shortly after the outburst of novac and supernovac; and the H II regions, planetary nebulae, and supernova remnants. Population 2 stars, globular clusters, and luminous stars in the Magellanic Clouds, M31, and M33, are also included in this publication. Finally, the Atlas gives the ultraviolet spectra of galaxies of different Hubble types and of active galaxies

Earnings Management: The Effect of Ex Ante Earnings Expectations

Yeshttps://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/manuscript-submission-guideline

Understanding defensive and secure in-group positivity: The role of collective narcissism

Integrating psychoanalytic ideas of group idealisation with social identity and categorisation theories, this article discusses the distinction between secure and defensive in-group positivity. Narcissistic in-group positivity captures a belief in in-group greatness that is contingent on external validation. It reflects defensive in-group positivity, insofar as it stems from the frustration of individual needs, and predicts increased sensitivity to threats as well as undesirable consequences for out-groups and the in-group. Secure in-group positivity—that is, in-group positivity without the narcissistic component—is a confidently held positive evaluation of one’s in-group that is independent of the recognition of the group in the eyes of others. It stems from the satisfaction of individual needs, is resilient to threats and has positive consequences for the in-group and out-groups. I review evidence for these two distinct ways people relate to their social groups and discuss theoretical and practical implications for understanding intra- and intergroup relations

Canine respiratory coronavirus employs caveolin-1-mediated pathway for internalization to HRT-18G cells

Canine respiratory coronavirus (CRCoV), identified in 2003, is a member of the Coronaviridae family. The virus is a betacoronavirus and a close relative of human coronavirus OC43 and bovine coronavirus. Here, we examined entry of CRCoV into human rectal tumor cells (HRT-18G cell line) by analyzing co-localization of single virus particles with cellular markers in the presence or absence of chemical inhibitors of pathways potentially involved in virus entry. We also targeted these pathways using siRNA. The results show that the virus hijacks caveolin-dependent endocytosis to enter cells via endocytic internalization